A coupling device for a propulsion system of the kind disclosed in the preamble of claim 1 is usually used for ships, and in particular for disconnection of the main drive source in case of an emergency situation or an auxiliary situation, wherein the propulsion system may be driven by an accessory drive source.
Generally such coupling devices are operated either manually or hydraulically. Regarding the manually operated coupling devices, the handling of the disconnection and reconnection of the coupling may be time consuming and imply hard work for the operator. Further the fit and tolerances for such manually operated coupling devices can be critical and therefore associated with high production costs and accurate assembly.
DE10235286 describes a propeller shaft clutch for separating or making a drive connection between a drive machine and a propeller. The clutch is a hydraulically operated toothed coupling with externally toothed coupling hubs and an inner toothed coupling sleeve which is axially displaceable on the coupling hubs. Such hydraulically operated coupling devices generally have a complicated and expensive structure. Another issue regarding hydraulically operated coupling devices is often the heavy weight and the space requiring design.
Hence, there is a need for an improved coupling device for a ship propulsion system, and in particular a coupling device that is suitable to operate and cost-effective to produce.